I Wear My Sunglasses

No, this isn’t a favorite song and you don’t need to wear your sunglasses at night, but it is a public service reminder to wear your sunglasses during the day. Most of us are very conscious of using sunscreen but do you always remember to protect your eyes?

Recently I went in for my yearly eye exam for new contacts and since several older members in my family developed macular degeneration (usually an age-related condition) I asked if there were any preventative measures I could do to head it off. I was informed that one potential cause is sun damage. However, I did a little research and found conflicting information on this.

However the very same week, I happened to see a portion of one of the early shows and they were talking about cataracts. The physician on the program stated that no one should have cataracts since research has shown that UV rays are the culprit.

When I was younger, sunglasses were all part of the image and I did love my Ray Ban Sunglasses. But somehow I got out of the habit of wearing them. This past month I have made a effort again, and it is amazing now that as soon as I go out in the sun I feel myself squinting – feeling a need to put them on.

The only bad thing about getting back in the habit of wearing sunglasses is keeping up with them. I tend to buy the more expensive ones because it really hurts my pocketbook when I do lose them – thus I keep up with my glasses better. Another friend of mine is the opposite. She just buys four or five at the beginning of the summer and doesn’t worry if she leaves them anywhere. Right now I have three pairs – my repaired Ray Ban, which I use when I am working outside, and then two different styles of Brighton – from when I was in my silver phase. But since they are so out of date, I am not really attached to them. Today when I got in the car to go to work I couldn’t find any. So I am thinking about a new pair of Ray Bans. Or I am open to suggestions.

So the questions – do you always wear sunglasses? Do you have a favorite brand or style or do you have different types for different looks? And can you keep up with them?

I wear mine almost every time I set foot outdoors. But I also live in sunny, high altitude Colorado and have very light colored eyes. I simply would not be able to see comfortably without them. I tend to be of the “buy one expensive pair” school of thought. My last pair lasted about three years. I can justify spending a little more for something I wear every single day for four three or four years. I keep them in their case, in my purse.

Even though I live in Seattle, known for “it rains all the time,” we actually do get some awesome weather at times, like this week for example. I always carry sunglasses and an umbrella with me in spring or summer because even though it might be pouring rain with dark heavy clouds in the morning, it can be a gorgeous sunny day in the afternoon.